Sky and Ice
by steven watemaker
Summary: In the skating rink, he was the only one who gave her the spirit to overcome all odds... Whet fate binds them together for one more chance, Can they ever let go of each other again? TazusaXPete Please R


NOTE: Hello! Ginban Kaleidoscope does not belong to me.. I don't even know how to skate properly.. Anyway, I dedicate this fiction to my friends Blesse Marie Perez and Patricia Neil Zulueta, both of which are ginban fanatics. LOL... okay... enough talk.. ficcage time.

**Sky and Ice**

By: Steven Watemaker

Chapter 1: The Newspaper

Sunday morning. The warm early sun's rays woke up figure skater Tazusa Sakurano. It was only a few days after they came back from the Winter Olympics in Torino. It was barely ten days after the ghost that possessed her left. It took her time to adjust to life without him: bathing and clothing without a blindfold, having no one to talk to when she is alone, and not finding a rational reason to eat tomatoes.

Although they just came back from the Olympics, Tazusa already had a skating tournament in store for her in three months time. So right after breakfast, it's off to the rink to practice her new short program routine. As she was sipping her morning coffee, something at the back of her head was telling her to grab the morning newspaper. Although she's not usually a person who reads the paper, she grabbed it anywayand read it while eating. Some of the sports section articles were about her, but she didn't take notice. However, what did catch her eye was a little article in the World News area. What it contained shocked her.

**Police investigation on Montreal Airs Show disaster point to Sabotage**

Canada- Three Months after an airplane crash at the Montreal air show, the police released its findings on the stunt plane crash that killed the pilot of the airplane. Chief investigator John Taylor told the press that the plane's controls were rigged to fail during a performance in the Montreal Air show last November 15 killing the 16-year old pilot, Pete pumps.

Tazusa shook. She let down her mug and took a deep breath as tears welled in her eyes.

"H-his plane was s-sabotaged?" She said to herself. "Who would do such a thing? And why pete?" She remembered their final conversation above the Italian ice. She couldn't believe what she read. Tears started falling down her flustered cheek.

"Is something the matter sis?" Yoko asked. There was much concern in her eyes.

"N-nothing… I'm fine. There was just something in my eye… that's all" Tazusa faked a smile.

"Oh… Okay" said Yoko, not fully buying Tazusa's story. Nevertheless, she continued. "Well, you and coach better get going now."

"W-we do?" asked Coach Takashima, who was ogling a picture of his fiancée. He became flustered a bit and stood up to get ready. Tazusa stood up too, and Yoko was clearing the tables.

"I wonder what's wrong with Tazusa?" Yoko asked herself.

XXX

At the rink, Tazusa was yet again distracted while practicing. She did a double axel jump flawlessly, but her mind was wandering to the article she had read that morning. She did a Mohawk and a 3-turn without much difficulty, and began spiraling in the edge of the skating rink followed shortly by a Walley jump, narrowly escaping a fall to her bottom. But her motions were mechanical, devoid of any emotion. Her coach noticed this, and began to worry. Her spark was all but extinguished. Was this a result of losing back in Torino? Surely not.

It was when Tazusa came out of the Walley Jump and into the Triple Lutz did everything start to go wrong. Her mind had wandered too far… Reminiscing too much… She was reveling in her sadness in excess… that she miscalculated her footing when she jumped. It resulted to her falling not on her feet, nor her bottom, but on her head.

Coach Takashima was mortified. He ran into the ice and towards Tazusa. He told her to wake up, shaking her body, though in vain.

"Tazusa! Tazusa! Wake up, Tazusa!" He shouted. Tazusa remained unconscious.

He immediately went to the phone and called for an ambulance. Five minutes later, the ambulance came and a team of paramedics rushed the figure skaterto the hospital. Coach Takashima and Yoko were with her. She was quickly put into the emergency room where some doctors examined her. Coach and Yoko waited outside for the result.

After half an hour, a doctor emerged. He said that Tazusa had sustained a concussion, and that she was in a coma, and that no one knew when she will wake up. Yoko started to cry. Coach qietly thanked the doctor and proceeded towards Tazusa's room.

XXX

She saw a long tunnel, with a faint light at the end. The ground beneath her feet felt like ice. She started skating towards the light; and as she emerged, she was blinded by stunning luminescence.

"Tazusa Sakurano" said a voice. "You are not dead yet. But your soul has wondered into heaven. You shall stay here for one hundred days."

"What?" Tazusa asked. "Is this some sort of sick joke?" She screamed at the direction from which the voice came from. She received no replies. "Hey! I'm talking to you! Answer me!" Still, no replies came from beyond the thick light.

"Tazusa Sakurano?" another voice said. Tazusa wheeled behind to find the owner of the voice that seemed oddly familiar. What she saw next shocked her. It was Pete Pumps.

"Hey! What are you doing here in heaven?" The Canadian asked.

"This is heaven?"

"You should have listened to that voice earlier."

"This is a joke… A dream! Yes… I'm dreaming! I'll wake up in my room sooner or later… this has to be a dream!" Tazusa rationalized.

"Err… This isn't a dream. This is heaven. But I didn't expect you to die this soon." Pete replied.

"I'm not dead… I'm asleep. I should wake up any second now…"

Pete sighed in exasperation. "Oh well, have it your way!" He pinched her. It hurt a lot and convinced her that she was indeed not dreaming. He started to turn his back on Tazusa.

"No! Wait! Come back!" Tazusa shouted. Pete looked into her violet eyes, and felt something stir inside him. The violet eyes were starting to cry… 'I have… Something to tell you.' She said.

"Pete moved closer and wrapped his arms around Tazusa. "I already know.'

Tazusa was quiet. "You do?"

"Yes. But I have no intention of coming back to earth."

Tazusa began to seriously cry. "Why Pete? Can't you ask them to let you come down even for a moment or something?"

Pete sighed to collect his thoughts. He loosened his grip of her and looked directly at her eyes.

"I know my plane was sabotaged. Heck, I even know who did it. But I'm already dead and there's no real reason to come down and extract vengeance or something like that. So, I'm really, really sorry." He hugged Tazusa again, this time even tighter. 'I missed you, Tazusa."

"Eh?" Tazusa said. "I wasn't talking about that you idiot!" She freed herself from his grasp.

"T-then what were you about to say?" Pete said, he was scared of Tazusa now.

"Argh!" Tazusa began punching Pete in the chest. "It doesn't matter anymore… darn you! Argh!" She punched even harder. Pete, however, found this reaction of Tazusa's incredibly cute. "Where are the tomatoes in this place? I want to eat one." She continued.

"Hahaha. Even if you eat a tomato, I won't be affected anymore." Pete smiled sheepishly. It seemed that it was a forced habit for Tazusa to eat a tomato every time she was annoyed at the pilot.

"Hey Pete" She began. She started to somewhat calm down. Pete came closer to hear her better.

"Am I… really in heaven?"

"That's true."

"Please… stay by my side."


End file.
